Some flowers to brighten up your day!

I forgot that I had over 200 photos on my old Nikon backup camera, my D40x.  I prefer it over my Canon in dark light situations.

Here are just a few of the photos I had on it from over the summer!  All of these flowers were growing in my front garden.  I've now thrown out California poppy seeds, lupine, nasturtiums, and some kind of hummingbird mix.  We had light showers last night so hopefully now they will sprout.  And, another storm is moving through tonight!

Garner Valley fences~Good Fences~112516

I took a drive up around Garner Valley last weekend to check out the aspen.  Instead, I took photos of all the gorgeous fences and gates up there!  There are a LOT!  This is just a few...

This is the last post for our hostess at Good Fences, TexWisGirl.  She is handing it off to someone else.  I think she did a TERRIFIC job!  To visit Good Fences, please go to this link:     http://run-a-roundranch.blogspot.com/

Good Fences for November 25, 2016.

Just surviving

I haven't posted much since the election and I'm NOT going to talk about it.  Suffice it to say that we are now NOT watching any TV news at all.  Hubby is into reading crime novels and I'm reading Stephen King.  That's our reality.

He's read two Michael Collins novels and is now on his 2nd Joseph Wambaugh novel.  We both have to have a stiff brandy every night.

I'm busy outside.  I've planted 3 low crawling bougainvillas and 2 climbing ones on the fence near our neighbor to the west.  That's the fence with the gate that our black lab destroyed last time she got OUT of the yard!  She ended up down the street and a lady called me.  She IS microchipped and tagged, but we live 1 block off two major streets here in town and I'm SCARED TO DEATH she will get out and get hit by a car.  I've repaired the fence as best I can, but the gate has to be rebuilt.  So, we will NOT leave her alone overnight again!  OYE!

Hubby is...well, frankly I think he is depressed.  He sleeps 12 hours, then takes a couple of naps during the day.  He isn't active AT ALL.  He did go out yesterday for a haircut, but that was it.  I NEED to get him outside and active!  This isn't healthy.

I planted my sweet peas and my hollyhocks the day we had rain...Monday?  NO rain in sight for the next 10 days, however.  I also managed to throw out my California poppy seeds out front and all the other wildflower seeds I ordered during the summer...lupines, nasturtiums, salvia, all kinds of mixtures.  They should do well out front in the sunlight.

Not much else is new here...same old, same old.

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Some photos from a couple weeks ago...my morning walk.

Just some pretty flowers to cheer you up today!

If you are like me, you are anxious for this election to be OVER and DONE WITH!  Oye!

So, here to lower your blood pressure, are some nice flower photos I took up at our local nursery during the summer.  I actually forgot I had these on my backup camera, my old Nikon D40x.  Yes, Al, this is my old backup camera!  Hubby gave our son his Nikon D90, but in low light, I find the Nikon does a better job than my Canon!  Go figure...

Enjoy your day!  Hubby and I will be voting tomorrow morning right after 7 a.m.

Shadows on a walk

I'm TRYING to get hubby out for a daily walk, but, BELIEVE ME, it is hard.  He doesn't want to go.  He complains.  He's grumpy.  He's TIRED.  He's hungry.  I've heard EVERY excuse there is!

I often end up just going by myself.  Like a couple weeks ago (before he ended up in the hospital), I went to the Santa Rosa Mountains Visitor Center by myself and just walked around.  I was gone about 25 minutes.  It was GREAT!

Yes, that's my shadow in the photo!  Oh, well... I kinda like it.

UPDATE 10/03/16

Well, hubby seems to be settling into his NEW lifestyle.  We both went to our doctor yesterday.  I went because I had SEVERE dizziness on Tuesday.  I mean, I couldn't walk in a straight line and I was veering off to the left!  Hubby had to go in for his post-hospital stay checkup.

She seems to think, since all of the tests the hospital ran on him were negative, that it was a combo of his drug AND his eating habits.  He had ONLY had a Jamba Juice smoothie that day.  He frequently skips breakfast and lunch, thus only eating once a day.  Believe me, I've TRIED for years to get him to eat breakfast.  Now he is eating small meals throughout the day.  That seems to be good for his heart rate, too, instead of eating one ginormous meal at dinner.   He's never been a breakfast eater, but that is changing.  I bought him fresh fruit and yogurt.  He is holding his nose and eating the fruit (not the yogurt!), but at least he is trying. He seems to be settling in with his new medications and new life style.  The insurance company called yesterday to make sure he DID visit his own doctor.  I'm glad they did.  That was a reminder for him to GET SERIOUS about his health!  One can ignore things only for so long!

That was a real wake-up call.  I know several of you have gone through this, too, from your comments.  Yes, it was a life-changer!  We actually went to our local certified organic farmer's market yesterday and bought some salad mix, peppers, and onions.  Oh, and a pound of coffee from the Yucca Valley Coffee Brewing Company.  I'm drinking it this morning and it is good!  Hubby says they used to buy and pour it over at the Marriott.  AND...we walked around the park yesterday afternoon.  Of course, I had to DRAG him there!  He wanted to go home and take a nap and I said, "NO!"

Changes take time (and effort).  He's only 66 and his dad lived into his 90's.  So, we had salmon and a salad for dinner last night and we are having lean chicken and vegetables tonight.

How are you doing?  What changes have you made in your lifestyle?  Oh, and the doctor told him to lose 50 pounds NOW or ELSE!  Frankly, it wouldn't hurt me to lose weight, either, so his diet will help both of us!

I'm heading up to Oak Glen tomorrow morning with 2 of my retired teacher friends.  We promised we would all go somewhere once a week.  One gal has never been to Oak Glen!  I have all sorts of little trips planned for us, so that will give me a chance to get out and do some walking, too.    :-)

Please DO take care of yourself and tell your loved one(s) every day that you love them.

These were the beautiful clouds I saw near Aguanga and Temecula when I drove in on Monday morning.  They were off Highway 79.

Hubby is HOME

After spending 4 nights in the hospital over in Temecula, hubby is FINALLY home!  They ran a whole bunch of tests on him and all that came back is that he does have a blockage in his left artery and MAY eventually need a pacemaker.

It turns out his Metoprolol (beta blocker) was the culprit.  He was fatigued, dizzy, had a rash, and has sleep apnea.  His heart rate went down to 30 and he blacked out at the dinner table with our son and his family.  The doctors at the hospital took him OFF the damn Metoprolol (which I also take...) and allowed his system to flush it out.  They ran a battery of tests and other than the slow heart rate (and blockage), he is fine and in good health.

He will, however, be on a low sodium and low cholesterol diet.  NO MORE steaks and steak sauce!  Nonononononono! And, turkey for sandwiches!  No more half & half in his coffee either!  And, no more ice cream at night!

We are grabbing our cameras and going for a walk this afternoon up at the Living Desert.  He NEEDS to get out and exercise and lose a uh, hum..."few pounds".  So do I.  This episode has been a real wake up for me, too.

I woke up yesterday morning at 5 a.m. when he called.  Of course I panicked, thinking and fearing the worst.  However, he wanted me there at the hospital to take him home (hopefully) later that day.  I left the dog inside the house because we had a friend coming into the yard to get some wood that he cut last spring.  She was fine.  He got discharged at 4 p.m. and we went to see the grandkids in Temecula get ready for trick or treat, then drove back to the desert.  I'm glad I won't be making that drive again for a while!

He is seeing his own doctor tomorrow morning.

Thank you for all your kind thoughts.  I do appreciate them!~
Cheryl Ann